The embodiments herein relate generally to dental devices, and more particularly, to a dental burr for removing tooth structure.
Dentists use burrs powered by an actuator to form/shape/prepare a tooth and/or synthetic abutment by free-hand (a.k.a. crown prep) prior to fitting an artificially fabricated crown to the prepared tooth. These burrs conventionally include a shank and a head, wherein the head may comprise a myriad of shapes and the shank is used to attach the burr to a dental handpiece. The handpiece may employ air propulsion and turbine or electric motor controlled with an actuator (rheostat) that in turn allows the burr to turn at a desired revolutions per minute (RPM) to allow for removal of the desired tooth structure.
Preparation of the tooth requires the dentist to abrade/grind away the tooth circumferentially and coronal to apically to achieve a desired shape and margin for artificial crown fabrication and placement. The free-hand crown preparation method is time consuming and does not always result in a good/desired shape for a host of reasons. While dental burrs exist, conventional dental burrs do not have the ability to effectively preserve adjacent dental tissues. Rather, traditional burrs can potentially cause damage or deleterious effects (iatrogenesis) to adjacent hard and soft tissues and/or structures (e.g. dental restorations).
Therefore, what is needed is an improved dental burr for the formation/preparation of a tooth for fabrication and ease of placement of artificial crowns, wherein the dental burr prepares the tooth while simultaneously preserving adjacent dental tissue.